ALTHOUGH THE MOVIE BONNIE AND CLYDE, IS A HIT IN NORWAY, GEORGIE Fame’s recording, “The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde,” has been banned in that country.
“I don’t know why it was banned, but it’s certainly amusing to see the different reactions to the record in different countries,” Georgie said during an interview before he co-hosted WDCA’s Wing Ding with Scott Wallace.
Georgie, who hails from England, is making a whirlwind tour of this country to promote “The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde,” which reached the number one position on the British charts.
“America is such a big place,” Georgie said. “This traveling from city to city really wears me out. I’ll probably have to leave this country on a stretcher.”
It’s been three years since Georgie’s last hit in America, “Yeh, Yeh.” Now his new song, which is not the theme from Bonnie and Clyde, but rather a story about the two murderers, looks as if it may soon top this country’s charts.
Traveling with Georgie is his manager, Rick Gunnell. Besides managing Georgie, Rick owns an agency in England that handles some of that country’s best talent, including P. J. Proby, Alan Price, Chris Farlowe, and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers.
When asked to compare the American music scene to the British music scene, Rick said, “There’s a much larger young audience in America. In England, most of the acts draw an older audience, except for the Bee Gees.
“Also, we go in for a lot more soul in England then we used to. Then, we’ve still got sing-a-long types like Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck for the Moms and Dads.”
Georgie, who is twenty-four, started singing professionally eight years ago. He was influenced early in life by Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis. His basic sound is sort of jazz-oriented rock.
Georgie, who leaves for home on March 2, will probably be back in this country in June for a concert tour. “If I bring my own band with me, I’d like to do some college gigs,” he said. “I don’t think I’m ready for the American nightclub scene at this stage of the game.”
A concert in a bullring in Spain is just one item on Georgie’s agenda for the near future. The concert is being sponsored by Coke and the Spanish government, and Georgie will be paid $14,400 for one performance.
Georgie and Rick both hope that after “The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde,” which is number forty-nine on the American charts this week, fades, Georgie won’t have another three-year absence from this country.